A Comprehensive Guide to Spanish Tenses and Moods

Spanish has a wide variety of tenses and moods that allow speakers to express actions happening at different times and under varying circumstances. The following guide will help you navigate through them all.

I. Indicative Mood (El Indicativo)

1. Present Tense (El Presente)

This tense is used to express habits, general truths, actions taking place now or in the near future.

• Examples:
• Yo hablo español. (I speak Spanish.)
• Tú comes pan. (You eat bread.)

2. Present Perfect (El Pretérito Perfecto)

This tense is used to express actions completed in the recent past that have a connection to the present.

• Examples:
• Yo he hablado español. (I have spoken Spanish.)
• Tú has comido pan. (You have eaten bread.)

3. Preterite (Simple Past, El Pretérito Indefinido)

This tense is used to describe actions completed at a definite point in the past.

• Examples:
• Yo hablé español. (I spoke Spanish.)
• Tú comiste pan. (You ate bread.)

4. Imperfect (El Pretérito Imperfecto)

This tense is used to describe ongoing or repeated actions in the past.

• Examples:
• Yo hablaba español. (I was speaking Spanish/I used to speak Spanish.)
• Tú comías pan. (You were eating bread/You used to eat bread.)

5. Past Perfect (El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto)

This tense is used to express an action that had already been completed before another action or time in the past.

Examples:

• Yo había hablado español. (I had spoken Spanish.)
• Tú habías comido pan. (You had eaten bread.)

6. Future (El Futuro)

This tense is used to express actions that will take place in the future.

Examples:

• Yo hablaré español. (I will speak Spanish.)
• Tú comerás pan. (You will eat bread.)

7. Conditional (El Condicional Simple)

This tense is used to express hypothetical situations or give advice.

Examples:

• Yo hablaría español. (I would speak Spanish.)
• Tú comerías pan. (You would eat bread.)

8. Conditional Perfect (El Condicional Compuesto)

This tense is used to describe hypothetical actions that might have happened in the past.

Examples:

• Yo habría hablado español. (I would have spoken Spanish.)
• Tú habrías comido pan. (You would have eaten bread.)

9. Future Perfect (El Futuro Perfecto)

This tense is used to describe actions that will have been completed at a certain point in the future.

Examples:

• Yo habré hablado español. (I will have spoken Spanish.)
• Tú habrás comido pan. (You will have eaten bread.)

II. Subjunctive Mood (El Subjuntivo)

10. Present Subjunctive (El Presente de Subjuntivo)

This mood is used to express doubt, necessity, or action that has not yet occurred.

Examples:

• Espero que tú hables español. (I hope that you speak Spanish.)
• Es importante que tú comas pan. (It’s important that you eat bread.)

11. Present Perfect Subjunctive (El Pretérito Perfecto Compuesto)

This mood is used to express actions that have happened in the past or will happen in the future that are connected to the present, usually after expressions of judgment, doubt or emotion.

Examples:

• Espero que tú hayas hablado español. (I hope that you have spoken Spanish.)
• Es importante que tú hayas comido pan. (It’s important that you have eaten bread.)

12. Imperfect Subjunctive (El Pretérito Imperfecto de Subjuntivo)

This mood is used to express hypothetical situations in the past, express emotions or judgments about past events.

Examples:

• Era mejor que tú hablaras español. (It was better that you spoke Spanish.)
• Dudo que tú comieras pan. (I doubt that you ate bread.)

13. Past Perfect Subjunctive (El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto Compuesto)

This mood is used to express hypothetical situations that might have happened in the past.

Examples:

• Ojalá que tú hubieras hablado español. (If only you had spoken Spanish.)
• Dudo que tú hubieras comido pan. (I doubt you had eaten bread.)

III. Imperative Mood (El Imperativo)

14. Imperative (El Imperativo)

This mood is used to give orders or commands.

Examples:

• ¡Habla español! (Speak Spanish!)
• ¡Come pan! (Eat bread!)

15. Negative Imperative (El Imperativo Negativo)

This mood is used to tell someone not to do something.

Examples:

• ¡No hables español! (Don’t speak Spanish!)
• ¡No comas pan! (Don’t eat bread!)

By mastering these tenses and moods, you’ll be able to express a wide range of time-related actions and nuances in Spanish, greatly enhancing your conversational ability.

Check out our series of Complete Spanish Grammar articles – everything you’ll ever need to know about Spanish grammar.

Or, learn more about LingoToGo here.

(One Week Free only available to students in the Americas and Europe. If you’re outside these regions, check out our offers here.)